Chocolate, cocoa and confectioneries represent 13.2% of the
Belgian food industry's global turnover and 14.6% of Belgium's food
exports. Currently, other European countries are the main importers
(75%) of Belgian chocolate confectionery products. The international
fame and distribution of these products demands a high
level of quality and a sufficiently long shelf life. Chocolate confectionery
fillings are intermediate moisture food (IMF) products with
water activity values (aw) of 0.70e0.90. These fillings are generally
regarded as microbiologically stable, often because alcohol or
preservatives are added to reduce the risk of microbial spoilage. But
consumer demands for clean label products are on the rise, and
addition of alcohol in confections is not allowed in some countries.
Confectionery producers are therefore stimulated to reduce or
eliminate the use of preservatives and search for more innovative
formulations (Vermeulen et al., 2014). Changes in composition can
potentially influence the stability, and consequently the shelf life, of
these chocolate confectionery products.